Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1600-1700
Language: Latin
Origin: accretio, from accrescere, from ad- 'to' + crescere 'to grow'

accretion

 noun
     
ac‧cre‧tion [uncountable and countable] formal
1 a layer of a substance which slowly forms on something
2 a gradual process by which new things are added and something gradually changes or gets bigger
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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